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SOUTHERN MORETON BAY ISLANDS

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Krummel Passage (cover) Canaipa Passage (top) & Poles near Russell Island Jetty (above)

CONTENTS

.......................................................................................................................Overview 4........................................................................................................................ History 7

................................................................................................................. Geography 8................................................................................................................... Services 13

........................................................................................................................Islands 16

...................................................................................................................... Russell 17 ................................................................................................................ Karragarra 25

........................................................................................................................ Lamb 30 .................................................................................................................... Macleay 35

Welcome to the Bay Islands!

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OLD JETTY, LAMB ISLAND

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Overview The Islands enjoy a quiet relaxed lifestyle...

In fact, archaeological finds indicate the Islands have been home to people for over 20,000 years, with the sea providing food then, as it does for us today!

The SMBI are also known as the ‘Bay Islands’ and RKLM (Russell, Karragarra, Lamb & Macleay) and are the four southern most inhab i ted islands of Moreton Bay which is protected from the Pacific Ocean by the chain of large sand islands including Moreton Is land, North and South Stradbroke.

The Islands enjoy a quiet, relaxed lifestyle with many re t i rees , pens ioners and younger families looking for safety and security, away from

the hustle and bustle of the mainland.

Russell Island is the largest of the Bay Islands at 8km long and 3km wide and provides a great alternative lifestyle for permanent residents and weekenders, with some low-key commercial development.

Between North Stradbroke and Russell Islands Eastern Shores is the spectacular Canaipa Passage and is also a favourite destination for private boats.

Karragarra is the smallest of the Bay Islands, at 0.5 km wide and 4 km long, with a small permanent population, sandy beaches and a protected swimming pool near the jetty and is popular for picnics.

Lamb Island is the second smallest Island, measuring 2km by 1km, and is easy to navigate with a swimming enclosure for cooling off.

Macleay is a popular place with several beaches for swimming and fishing and barbecue facil it ies in the foreshore parks. Tiny Perulpa Island is joined by a causeway to Macleay and is generally regarded as part of Macleay.

The SMBI are a quiet paradise where you can enjoy safe swimming, boating and water sports such as kayaking. The fish ing i s g rea t w i th an abundance of species found around the islands. Turtles, dolphins and dugongs can often be seen in the waters around the Islands...

One of Many Crab Pots

Lamb Island Ocean Pool

View across Canaipa Passage

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SUNSET AT KARRAGARRA BEACH

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MORNING MIST, RUSSEL ISLAND

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Russell Island Jetty

Moreton Bay (Quandamooka) and its islands were formed about 6000 years ago as the sea level rose and inundated the floodplains of the Brisbane Rive and were were originally inhabited by Aboriginal tribes.

First named Morton's Bay by Captain Cook when he passed by on 15 May 1770, honouring Lord Morton, president of the Royal Society. Todays spelling of Moreton Bay was an error from Hawkesworth's Voyage, the first published account of Cook's voyage. Cook gave the name only to the bight formed by the eastern side of Moreton Island and the northern end of Stradbroke Island (there was only one island in 1770). He was unaware of the South Passage (as it's now called) between the two islands, and did not sail into what is the present Moreton Bay.

Matthew Flinders was the first recorded European to enter the Bay when he sailed between Moreton Island and Bribie Island in 1799. He landed at the Pumicestone Passage, Redcliffe and Coochiemudlo Island.

John Oxley followed, exploring the Brisbane River in 1823. A year later, Oxley established a settlement at the present site of Redcliffe. In 1825 a depot a n d p i l o t s t a t i o n w e r e established at Amity Point as the South Passage provided the shortest shipping route.

European settlement began in earnest after the abandonment of Redcliffe, and work began on a new convict settlement several miles up the Brisbane River in 1825. Within a couple years this new settlement was growing rapidly.

Increased shipping meant the facilities required to service the pilot station at Amity grew, and in 1827 convicts were sent to Dunwich to construct a new causeway, remnants of which can still be found...

Within a year, Dunwich had a permanent settlement but was difficult to sustain and closed in 1831 due to poor weather, smuggling, and conflict with aborigines.

After a four month journey the immigrant ship the Artemisia reached Moreton Bay in 1848, followed a year later by the Fortitude carrying more free immigrants.

The 1850s saw timber emerge as the regions first industry. In 1947 a car ferry service began and led to increased tourism, land sales at Point Lookout and sand mining...

History

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Intertidal Zone of Cow Bay, Macleay Island and Flowers of one of the many mangrove species...

Moreton Bay extends 125 km from Caloundra in the north to almost Surfers Paradise in the south. The bay is 35 km across at its widest point with a permanent man made channel at Fisherman Islands (the mouth of the Brisbane River) for access to the Port of Brisbane.

The bay itself contains around 360 islands in total. This includes Russell, Karragarra, Lamb and Macleay and are collectively known as the SMBI (Southern Moreton Bay Islands) or RKLM.

Development also occurred on Coochiemudlo and Bribie Islands. Also, in the past Peel Island was used as a sisal plantation, quarantine station, asylum and a leper colony.

Moreton Bay is described as lagoonal because of the barrier islands (Moreton Island to the north, North Stradbroke in the centre and South Stradbroke to the south) that restrict the flow of oceanic water from the Pacific Ocean.

As a result the bay has an average depth of 6.8m with a moderate tidal range of 1.5 to

2m and is nutrient rich, being continually fed by Tingalpa Creek, Schulz Canal and the Brisbane, Pimpare, Logan, Albert and Pine Rivers.

The shallow depth lets light filter through to the seafloor, allowing an array of marine plants (including sea grass) to grow which support a diverse range of fauna. The bay is the only place in Australia where dugong gather into herds.

These unique factors combine to form one of Queensland's mos t s ign i fican t coas ta l resources.

Geography

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VIEW FROM POTTS POINT, MACLEAY ISLAND

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Old Log, Macleay

Driftwood, Macleay

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VIEW TO PININPININ POINT, MACLEAY ISLAND

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OONCOONCOO BAY, RUSSELL ISLAND

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Services Russell, Karragarra, Lamb, Macleay...

The islands have a frequent vehicle barge (provided by Stradbroke Ferries) and fast passenger service (provided by Bay Islands Transit), leaving from Redland Bay.

During the original subdivision in the early 1970s, a bridge was promised by the then government wh ich never eventuated. Some residents now feel the pressure of transport to the mainland for some shopping tr ips , as mainland parking has become very scarce.

Russell and Macleay with the two largest populations, the largest land mass have the most comprehensive services.

This includes supermarkets, restaurants, primary schools, doctors, police, ambulance, fire brigade, SES, clubs and pubs.

Lamb Island has a kiosk with basic supplies and convenience items.

Karragarra has no shops at all, which is preferred by the residents.The Islands are served by two telephone exchanges.

Macleay and Lamb Islands by the Macleay Island Exchange, while Karragarra and Russell Islands are served by Russell Island Exchange.

The exchanges do not have d i r e c t b a c k h a u l t o t h e mainland, but connected via Microwave to other larger exchanges. ADSL Internet is available to the Islands and is capable of ADSL2+ Speeds as i s W i r e l e s s B r o adband , however some bushy areas have poor reception.

Some residents are not able to receive ADSL, this is due to the copper line's length being beyond maximum standards (5km). This is combated on Macleay Island by having the Radio Masts raised slightly.

Ferry at Island Jetty

View to North Stradbroke

Island Life

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MAIN CHANNEL, RUSSELL ISLAND

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KRUMMEL PASSAGE, RUSSELL ISLAND

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CALENDAR EVENTSCALENDAR EVENTSCALENDAR EVENTS

MayTingira Boat Club Macleay Island Canoe Race

June

Karragarra Sea Markets

Every 1st Wednesday‘Dead Parrot Society’ artists meeting @ the Blue Parrot on Macleay

Every 3rd Wednesday‘Dead Parrot Society’ artist meeting @ the RSL on Russell

Every Saturday‘Organic Markets’ @ the Lemon Farm, Macleay

??? What event might you bring?

Islands...

Jetty at

Macleay

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Turtle Swamp Wetlands

Like the other Bay Islands, Russell has supplied people with food, shelter and other resources for thousands of years.

Originally known as Canaipa, meaning Iron Spear it was renamed in the 1840s after the then British Secretary of State for the colonies, Lord John Russell.

In the 1850s the islands first non-indigenous residents came to the island for work. Most were lime-burners, oystermen or timber-gathers and generally moved on when the work was

done. The first permanent settlers were attracted by the island’s sugar and timber prospects.

The mid 1860s saw the arrival of John (Tinker) Campbell who l e a s e d l a n d f o r t i m b e r gathering and sugar production on Russell. Soon though the family moved the majority of their activities to Macleay and continued to establish various enterprises over the next decade.

It was the arrival of settlers like John Willes in the late 1860s

that saw the beginning of the islands long agricultural history.

These early farmers started a rich and lucrative trade in fruit and vegetables that supplied the ma in land w i th f resh produce for well over a century.

It was not until the 1970s, when somewhat controversially the farms were subdivided that the islands current character began to evole.

Now Russell Island has more that 3000 res idents and continues to grow and evolve...

Russell Island

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WHISTLING KITE WETLANDS, RUSSELL

Water Lilly

Fern & Reeds

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PRIVATE JETTY, RUSSELL

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Rocky Point, Russell

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SANDY BEACH, RUSSELL

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DUSK AT CANAIPA, RUSSELL

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‘PERFECT FOR SAILING’... RUSSELL

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SUNSET AT KARRAGARRA OCEAN POOL

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Karragarra Foreshore

Kar ragar ra Is land is the smallest of the SMBI group and the only island to have retained its indigenous name.

In the 1870s though it was known as Rabbit Island, which was apt given the introduced species of rabbits were farmed for food on the island for many years.

In 1839, Colonial surveyor Robert Dixon, who named Macleay, noted Karragarra Island was also know as Tim Shea’s Island, indicating the

the convict had spent time on both islands for a time.

By 1859 the Moreton Bay Oyster Company had built a depot for oyster leases on the western side and over the next few decades oystermen were the main residents of the island.

In 1889 the northern part of Karragarra was subdivided, with most of the island being held by the Noyes farming family y the early twentieth century. During this time the

Moreton Bay Oyster Company retained its lease on the western side of the island.

During the 1930s Karragarra was a popular spot fro the B r i s b a n e b a s e d H a y l e s Cruises, which offered well patronised and popular day trips around Moreton Bay.

Visitors to Karragarra Island had the added benifit of being able to buy fresh local produce direct of the farm gate...

Karragarra Island

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Pool Detail

Pool Detail

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KARRAGARRA BEACH

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Rocky Point, Russell

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SUNSET... KARRAGARRA

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Lamb Foreshore

Originally named Ngudooroo, the history of Lamb Island is similar to that of the islands.

After thousands of years of indigenous habitation, the islands resources attracted timber-gathers and oystermen in the early days of European settlement. Farmers followed in the 1860s once the area was open up for settlers and a cen tu ry l a te r res iden t ia l landowners and hol iday-makers moved in.

Clarkes Point is named after an early oysterman, Edwin Clarke who worked his oyster beds on the eastern side of the island in the 1860s. Lucas Passage is similarly named after another oysterman, Thomas Lucas.

Like many other oysterman of the day, both men burnt the oyster shells for lime.

In the mid 1860s the first land releases were made, with the first Premier of Queensland, RGW Herbert being among the applicants. His application

under the coffee and sugar regulations though, did not proceed.

By 1871 the island had its first freehold owner, John Harris, who by the end of the 1880s had subdivided the land. Over the next 20 years the land was turned over to farmers.

In 1905, pineapples were introduced fro Hawaii with several families growing them as well as bananas, tomatoes, pawpaws, passion fruit and avocadoes

Lamb Island

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Lamb Ocean Pool

& Old Jetty

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CLARKES POINT, LAMB

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LUCAS PASSAGE & LAMB ISLAND

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MACLEAY JETTY

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Macleay Jetty

Orignially called Jencomercha, Macleay Island (Alcheringa) gained its current name in 1839, after the former Colonial Secretary for NSW Alexander Macleay.

Prior to that, Macleay Island was listed on several maps as Tim Shea’s Island after Irish convict Timothy Shea, who arrived in Moreton Bay in July 1827. Originally at Dunwich in a timber gang, he escaped in the mid 1830s and lived on Macleay at Thompson’s Point for about 14 years.

The Campbell family, led by John 'Tinker' Campbell, were the first permanent settlers on the island and leased or owned nearly all the island.

Tinker Campbell was an early Moreton Bay squatter and entrepreneur who engaged in many business ventures after his arrival in the 1840s.

They originally established a sugar plantation on Macleay u s i n g S o u t h S e a I s l a n d labourers, known as Kanakas. Tinker went on to set up a saltworks on Pininpinin Point. It was probably also used as a sugar mill and rumour has it, it was a front for a rum distillery, as many sugar growers around the Bay engaged in this illicit activity at the time.

When the family sold some of its holdings in 1871, the Kanakas were included in the sale, along with the 40 acres of

sugar cane, buildings, sugar mill and salt works.

The Campbell’s were timber-getters, oystermen, fishermen and dugong hunters as well as farmers. They a lso t r ied sponge fishing, cultivating castor oil trees and raising angora goats, but none were a commercial success.

The Campbells moved to Stradbroke in the 1870s. By the 1880s the island's farmers were cultivating mainly fruit, including bananas, mangoes and custard apples. As with Lamb Island, pineapples were introduced in 1905. Later crops included tomatoes, pawpaws, passionfruit and avocadoes.

Macleay Island

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Jetty Detail

Jety Detail

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OLD JETTY, POTTS POINT, MACLEAY

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Mangroves, Cow Bay, Macleay

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POTTS POINT (COONDOOROOPA), MACLEAY

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VIEW ACROSS MORETON BAY (QUANDAMOOKA) FROM LAMB

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Documents

ted islands of moreton

russell islands eastern

lamb macleay

chain of large sand

smallest island

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rklm russell

quiet relaxed lifestyle